Undercover
by TheAddict4Dramatics
Summary: She knew this was their cover. He was Han Solo, smuggler looking for his latest job, and she was his latest form of relaxation. A random girl picked up at a random space port. As far as this story went he was more than entitled to touch her anytime and anywhere he wanted and she had to pretend she wanted him to. Han/Leia... little fluff, little angst, mostly blah...


**Disclaimer: Nothing belongs to me except the mistakes as this is un-beta'd.**

Undercover

Han's jaw all but dropped as Leia finally emerged from his cabin on the Falcon. She was self-consciously pulling at the clinging material of the outfit and stoically refusing to meet his eye. And boy did he know why that was.

The outfit she wore – a jumpsuit he supposed you'd call it – was black and very, very tight. It had two string-thin straps holding it up, leaving her arms completely bare. The bodice had large cut-outs either side revealing the sides of each breast and upper ribs. Her back was entirely on show and the left leg of the jumpsuit was non-existent.

Han had never seen her in such a dark colour before. She nearly almost always wore white. And if not white then a very light blue instead. Though at that moment in time the colour of the garment was definitely not what Han was focusing on.

Whilst he had never seen her in such a colour before, he was virtually certain no one had ever seen this much of her bare skin before. By which he meant: no adult male of no relation since she had come of age. He couldn't imagine she had ever put that much of herself on display in public before and it was, quite frankly, shocking.

He'd always known she was beautiful. Even when she was annoying the hells out of him he could never deny that. What he wasn't aware of until this very moment was just how perfect her body was. All of her muscles were quietly defined – strong but still subtle enough to give the overall length of her body an overtly feminine softness.

It may have been shocking for Leia – Princess of Alderaan, darling of the Rebellion and general ice queen – to be dressed in such a garment but where they were going she wouldn't stick out at all, barely turn a head. Though she'd probably still be the most beautiful woman in the Cantina, she'd be an appropriately dressed beauty.

After a long moment of silence in which she still refused to meet his eye, Han finally spoke:

"Kriffing hells!"

"Don't say a thing." Leia ground out in a low voice, eyes still trained on the floor. She acted like a dog baring its teeth, daring Han to utter a single sound, ready for attack.

"You look incredible!" He told her genuinely.

Perhaps it was that genuineness in the tone of his voice that made Leia look up. He noticed for the first time the red tinge that was painting both of her cheeks and creeping its way down her neck. He was suddenly impressed that she'd had the balls to even come out and show him.

"Incredibly cheap maybe." She said quietly.

"Well luckily that is exactly what we're going for. You're going to blend right in."

"You mean to say there are actually going to be other women there dressed in as little as this?"

"Oh and then some. You're going to look positively modest."

He winked at her which caused the blush on her cheeks to deepen. Leia pulled at the material again as if she could loosen it with her fingers. She couldn't of course; as soon as she let it go it sprung defiantly back to lay slick against her skin.

They pair left Chewie guarding the Falcon that was all ready for take should they need to make a swift exit. The contact they were meeting was a reliable one – some intel he had given the Alliance previously had checked out. Still, with where they were headed you could never be too careful.

As they walked the short distance from the hangar to the Cantina Leia was glad the evening was so warm. She was practically naked and incredibly embarrassed, the very last thing she needed to be was cold on top of that. Not when she'd spend the last few weeks deathly cold (and not dying) on their base on Hoth. And she'd be back there, freezing to death (and not dying), soon enough.

She noticed Han kept giving her sneaky side-glances when he thought she wasn't looking. In all fairness his reaction to her attire had not been as bad she thought it would be. He hadn't even made any lude comments – yet. One of the female pilots had given her the jumpsuit when she'd been commissioned to go on this mission with Han and Chewie. The woman had told her she had experience of this planet and this would see her right there. Han had definitely agreed she wouldn't be out of place in it but she felt so uncomfortable, it felt as if she might as well be wearing nothing at all. Han gave her another sideward glance and Leia pulled at the material once more in response.

"I know you must feel pretty uncomfortable in that thing but you are gonna have to learn to hide it better before we get to this place. You'll blow our cover." Han told her casually.

Leia felt her back straighten in annoyance. _How dare he criticise me._ Was her immediate thought. Not when he knew what a big deal it was for her to even consider putting this thing on. Yet here she was with it on, in front of him, strolling down a public street, about to have it on in front of a lot more people too. She turned to thrash it out with him but then stopped herself. He had a point. She could look the part all she liked but it wasn't going to work if she didn't act the part.

"I know." She acquiesced. She saw Han turn to look at her in surprise. That may be the first time she had ever agreed with him so easily. "I'm trying. I just keep thinking what my father would say if he could see me now. He'd probably have a heart attack. I think this is the closest I am ever going to come to being glad he is not here to witness this." She said with a sad smile. Even joking about father still hurt beyond believe.

"You know I met him once." Han replied after a moment of silence.

He was trying to decide whether to tell her that or not. He didn't want to upset her but then he couldn't think of a single other thing to say. It was Leia's turn to be surprised.

"You did?!"

"Yeah, sort of. It was years ago in Coruscant, after I'd just been thrown out of the Academy. I was a cocky little shit…"

"What's changed?" Leia laughed and he indulged her in a sarcastic smile. She was relaxing a little already and he was glad he had decided to share this story.

"Anyway… I picked a fight with some guy I thought was looking at me funny or something, without realising it was one of the personal security guards of the Viceroy. That was a mistake." Leia smiled up at him genuine amusement. She could imagine that last sentence was rather an understatement. She knew how foreboding those security guards could be when they had been guarding her. "I managed to talk my way out of getting my ass kicked. Your father was standing a few feet away and had witnessed the whole thing with a sort of amused grin on his face. It was like he was disapproving but at the same time a little impressed at my front."

"That sounds like Father." Leia agreed. "He gave me that look through most of my later teen years."

"Well I'm sure not many other Core World leaders would have had that reaction. Most of them would have had me interned, read it as an attack on their lives or something. I always thought he was kind of a cool guy after that."

"He was." Leia said quietly.

The rest of the short journey to the Cantina was spend in comfortable silence. As soon as they descended the dark stairs to the basement bar Han's hand came to rest on Leia's bare, lower back. She jumped slightly at the contact and turned to give him a pointed look. He stared back at her defiantly, his eyes widening in an expression that could be clearly read as him telling her to relax. She knew this was their cover. He was Han Solo, smuggler looking for his latest job, and she was his latest form of relaxation. A random girl picked up at a random space port. As far as this story went he was more than entitled to touch her anytime and anywhere he wanted and she had to pretend she wanted him to.

At the bottom of the stairs the view that greeted them was one she had come to expect from previous intel missions she'd completed such as this. There was a variety of species and genders crammed into every dark booth and all along the cluttered bar. Leia certainly wasn't underdressed for such a place. In fact, Han had been right when he had told her there would others here in even less clothing than she was currently wearing.

She took in some of the characters, though making sure it wasn't obvious she was scouting the room, and concluded most looked even more suspicious than she was used to. For the first time she was actually quite glad for Han's clearly possessive arm wrapping its way around her waist. He was known here. And being with him would give her a certain level of protection. Beyond that he knew how to behave in such places and she knew he would do anything to protect her. Despite all the animosity between them that fact had been proven time and time again. The exact reason for this however was still proving a mystery to her. She subconsciously sidled closer into Han's embrace. Han, in turn, pretended not to notice.

"You know I'd feel a lot more relaxed if you'd let me have my own blaster." She told him quietly, out of the corner of her mouth.

"And where exactly would you store that currently?" Han teased her. The comment earnt him a disguised elbow to the ribs but that only made him smile more. "Besides, it'd look very suspicious for a women dressed like that to be carrying a weapon. Like or not you're purely for decorative purposes here sweetheart."

She turned and glared at him. She knew he meant decorative in terms of their current story and not decorative in terms of the mission but she also knew he was teasing her for the reaction it was sure to cause. Still, the comment irked her beyond belief. He really was the most arrogant asshole when he wanted to be.

As if to prove her point he leant down and nuzzled the side of her face, enjoying the way she slightly stiffened in his arms. Her next move however, completely stunned him. She stood on her tiptoes and pressed her whole body into his unabashedly before leaning up to whisper:

"Just wait till I get you back to your ship Captain."

She spoke loudly enough for those closest to them to overhear and exchange knowing looks. He knew she was playing him, getting her own back for his teasing behaviour before. But at the same time he had never heard her employ that tone of voice before and he couldn't help the slightly nervous gulp it produced. It was moments like this which made Han think that maybe he was getting in over his head with the once innocent back and forth between himself and the princess. He wouldn't sleep a wink tonight knowing she was just one door away but at the same time knowing a million miles separated the two of them from what she had just promised.

Leia pulled herself away just enough to spot their contact sitting at the bar over Han's shoulder. She indicated this to Han and the pair approached the lonely spacer.

"Katz!" Han bellowed as he opened wide the arm that wasn't wrapped around Leia to grasp the other man's hand.

"Han Solo as I live and breathe. I'm surprised to see you bud, I heard there was quite a price on your head."

Leia would have sworn she felt Han's grip on her hip tighten slightly. If it did it was only for the briefest moment but Leia could feel the tension radiating off of the body next to her. He'd told her there would be no risk of running into trouble regarding the debt on his head. He'd joked he couldn't promise not running into any other kind trouble though. Leia was starting to doubt to validity of that sentiment.

"What can I say, I'm feeling lucky."

Katz turned his attention to Leia and smiled in way that made her feel like she was wearing nothing at all. She did her best not to blush but her arm closest to Han did find its way around his waist to pull herself closer to him.

"I can see why." Katz sneered. "Well now that you're here I have a bit of business that might be to your fancy." Han smiled. At least he wasn't going to draw it out. Straight to business – get the intel and get out, exactly as he had planned it. "Why don't you drop the arm candy and we'll go and talk."

This time there was no denying that Han's grip on Leia tightened in an overtly protective move. He knew it was normal for the women to stay at the bar whilst the men went somewhere more private to talk shop. He had hoped to be able to pretend to be so into his latest space port pick-up that he wouldn't have to leave her. Apparently Katz wasn't going to play ball on that one. Han had no desire to leave Leia entirely unprotected in a place like this. He knew she could handle herself but these were not your average lowlifes and, as she had already pointed out, she was completely unarmed. For the first time since entering the Cantina he was unsure of what to do.

Not unusually, Leia ended up making the decision before he had the chance.

"I'll get you guys a drink in for when you come back." Leia said with a confidence that Han could tell she didn't feel.

He suspected that anyone else that hadn't spent the last almost three years with her would never be able to detect her nerves. He could though. She looked up at him and nodded, answering his silent question of _are you sure?_ Han leaned in and brushed his lips against her forehead. She tried to ignore the feeling of specific comfort and protection the gesture produced. He whispered against her skin, only louder enough for her to hear:

"Be careful. Stay alert. I'll be as quick as I can."

Han came out of the curtain-offed back room around twenty minutes later with a huge grin on his face. He'd got the intel securely stored in his inner pocket and had managed to ascertain a couple of bits of other information that he thought would be of use to the Rebellion. He'd also managed to do all of this as quickly as possible and having to only sit through a couple of the inevitable comments about Leia. Comments that he knew got to him more than they should. Especially the one about his reasons for staying with the Rebel Alliance. Katz had taken great pleasure saying to him: _Oh I see why you're sticking around with the Rebellion now. I knew they couldn't be paying you that much – well not in credits anyway! Damn Solo that is some serious payment._ Han was self-aware enough to know understand the reason that one irritated him so much was because there was some truth to it. Not that he was being paid the way Katz assumed. If only. But he knew Leia was a big part of the reason he hadn't left to payback Jabba yet. And Luke was a pretty big part of that reason too. And Wedge. And a few others. It was mainly Leia though.

He did a quick scan of room becoming increasingly more panicked when he couldn't locate Leia. She wasn't at the bar where he had left her and she wasn't in any of the booths. He stalked round to the other side of the room but couldn't find her there either. He contemplated whether it was worth the scene it may cause if he pushed himself into the fresher to check there. Everyone knew you didn't visit the fresher in a place like this unless you were after some decidedly dodgy and illegal entertainment. Entertainment that didn't much like being interrupted by the likes of Han frantically searching for his companion. But Leia might not have known that little fact, she could very well be in trouble in there.

Han was just about to go barging in when a woman sitting in the booth beside him suddenly spoke up.

"You looking for that little piece of ass you came in here with?" Han nodded. "She's gone. Got a better offer by the looks of it. Left with a guy a few minutes ago, out the back way."

Han's blood ran instantly cold in his veins. That wasn't good. He knew there was no way she could abandon her lookout post to leave with some random guy. Even if that random guy had pivotal information or she was striking some deal with him, she would have waited until he had come back.

That only left one option – she hadn't left through choice. Either someone had recognised her and knew she was worth a lot if handed over to the Empire, or just as bad and much more likely, someone saw a girl looking like that in place like this and fancied his chances – willing participant or not. Han knew no one would have paid much attention to someone dragging her out of here. They would have all just assumed she owed him money or was owned by him and had gone walkabouts.

Han burst out of the back door into the dark and abandoned alleyway behind the Cantina. He could feel his heart hammering in his chest, his effort to keep himself calm was failing. He just prayed whoever had her didn't have too much of a head start. Wherever they were they were already out of this street. He yanked the comlink out of his trouser pocket and went to connect a call to Chewie. As his thumb hovered over dial as he heard a very familiar voice shout:

"Get your hands off of me!"

Leia.

Han ran in the direction of the sound; finding her backed into an alcove of the grubby wall the next street over by a tall human male. As he approached he heard the tail end of the man's speech:

"You know I don't think you're who you say you are. You seem too proper to have ever sold yourself like you were pretending to to Solo earlier. They say he's with the Rebel Alliance now. Are you some prim little rebel recruit undercover?" Han saw the man lick his lips in a manner which made his next intentions painfully and disgustingly obvious. "Oh I'm going to enjoy this." The man laughed.

When Han finally caught up to where they were he saw the man had her pinned back to the wall. His tick forearm clammed across her throat and shoulders keeping her upper body in place. His big boots crushed her tiny feet beneath them so she couldn't make any attempt to get away. And, most disturbingly, his other hand was roughly assaulting her most intimate area through the thin fabric of the jumpsuit.

"She told you to take your filthy hands off of her."

He could hear how dangerous his own voice sounded. They was a shaking in his limbs that always came as a prelude to an explosive anger he had not felt in quite some time. He knew from experience he couldn't control himself if this anger fully took over. Seeing that man's hands there – so brazenly without permission – had made something snap inside of him. There was no telling what would happen now.

The man had half turned his head to see who had interrupted him. He didn't get a chance to look round all the way as both of Han's hands smashed his head into the wall beside them instantly causing his grip on Leia to loosen. Han pulled him completely away from her and out in the main street where he gave him a swift punch to the stomach that doubled the man over. Han took advantage of the man's kneeling positon to use his own knee to smash into his face. He heard the visceral crack of the man's nose braking before blood spewed forward covering Han's trouser leg. The wetness of the blood as it soaked through the trouser and onto Han's skin was enough to bring him to his senses just long enough for the man to stand and stagger, blind from his own blood, down the street and out sight.

"You're lucky I didn't kill you!" Han bellowed after him.

He turned back towards Leia to find her still standing in the alcove, clutching onto the wall for support and visibly shaking.

"Are you alright?"

He asked as he rushed over to her and held her face in his hands, bringing it up to look at him. He could see the unushered tears in her eyes but mainly she just looked shocked. He couldn't blame her. After a moment she seemed to regain herself and take in her surroundings. She shrugged off his embrace with her usual vigour and wiped hastily at her eyes in case she had let any of the tears fall. She hadn't of course.

"I'm fine." She told him irritably as if the whole thing had somehow been his fault. Apparently she'd forgotten she had volunteered to stay behind.

He knew that wasn't the real issue, knew that she didn't really blame him. The real issue was that the whole incident had made her seem vulnerable, weak in some way. And she just couldn't have that. Couldn't have anyone, least of all him, know that she was human just like everyone else. That she bleed, and cried, and things scared her. These were all things she tried her level best to hide at all times and this little situation had brought them all dangerously close to the surface.

"Leia…" He tried again in a softer tone of voice. He reached out to take her face in his hands once more and was both surprised and encouraged when she didn't instantly shake him off again. "Are you sure you're not hurt?"

There it was again. That motherfucking genuineness in his voice. The same tone she'd heard when he'd told her she looked incredible earlier. The same tone that made her want to look deep into his eyes to see if he really did mean it the way it sounded. That tone of voice that made everything so much more complicated. When everything he usually said was laced with bravado and bluster and arrogance and sarcasm. It made simple statements like _are you sure you're not hurt_ so much weightier than they might of otherwise been.

She kept her eyes low but nodded her head slowly.

"I'm fine." She repeated but in a completely different tone.

He knew he'd managed to break down a level or two of the barriers she always had around herself and consequently was allowed to hear just a fraction of the fear she was feeling. When she did finally meet his eye she saw he was looking at her as if he had expected the experience to have somehow broken her. She had the desperate need to prove him wrong. To show she was tougher than he clearly thought, tougher because she had had to be. That was why she said the next thing when she would have never normally revealed such a thing.

"It wouldn't have been the first time I've been roughed up that way."

Han draw away from her in shock; his eyes widening with it until realisation set in.

"The death star." He stated simply. It wasn't a question but she nodded nonetheless.

"They never actually went through with it. They just threatened me with it if I didn't talk. The threatening went far enough to prove they weren't bluffing. There were a couple of the guards who I think would have done it, were going to do it but Vader stopped them." She gave a short, hollow laugh. "Vader protected me from them."

Despite her intentions the story had made her sound more broken. It had probably solidified her status as a victim in his eyes. And now he would look at her with the pity she was desperate to avoid. She'd never told anyone that part of her incarnation before. She hadn't even put it in the official report. Sometimes it felt so obscure and far off she wondered if it had ever really happened at all. But the nightly dreams that plagued her were so real. She knew they were from memory and not delusion.

Han still held her face in his hands and she'd made no move to free herself from him. She felt his thumbs brush against her cheek and then angle her head so she was forced to look at him. To her surprise there was not even a hint of pity in his gaze just one of genuine concern. She knew from experience there was a big difference. Pity meant they'd already written you off. Concern meant they were in your corner – concerned for you, for your future – it meant they believed you had a future.

"You know what I'd do if I were you?" Han asked quietly. Leia shook her head in response. "I'd think about how those men that did that to you, that wanted to do more than that to you, they were probably aboard the Death Star when we destroyed it. Those fuckers were blown to a million pieces. They're gone and they're never coming back and you're still here, you're still fighting. You win."

The response was so typical of Han's view of the world. She had often told him that his tendency to view all things in black and white was overly simplistic. To him those men had hurt her, had wanted to hurt her even worse and they had been destroyed. They had got what was coming to them and she came out of top just by surviving. She'd truly never thought of it that way before. She supposed they were certainly worse ways to look at it. Though there were probably better ways to look at it too.

"Thank you for coming after me." She said as way of reply.

He gave a small smile and placed a feather light kiss on her forehead. Leia closed her eyes at the contact. She revelled again at how his physical touch seemed to instantly calm her. It was odd, to say the least, considering normally his mere presence in a room was enough to make her blood boil. Tonight, however, his closeness produced a peace in her she hadn't felt in months, years even. The idea in of itself was rather alarming but she felt suddenly so exhausted from the day's events she couldn't find the energy to even care in that moment.

"You got it kid." She found even that slightly patronising term of endearment usually reserved for Luke warmed her insides a little tonight. "I have everything I need from Katz. Let's get back to the Falcon."

They stepped out of the alcove hand in hand and she soon found herself wrapped into his side once more as they made their way back.

Leia wasn't foolish enough to believe that the night's events and subsequent revelations had really changed anything between them. They would be back to bickering and teasing and, let's face it, thinly veiled flirting in no time at all. But for that moment at least they had found some kind of understanding between them.


End file.
